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Klipsch Palladium or RF-7 III


Shimei

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Haha!  Total newbie here but as I stare at the beauty and bathe in the sound of my Forte III’s and Heresy III center, I really wasn’t thinking Kmart and these are the lower end Heritage?  I have about 25 other Klipsch speakers, none of which scream out Kmart. 

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12 hours ago, Dawson's Ridge said:

The Palladium was a 10-year project and an all-out no-cost limit project to make the best speaker Klipsch knew how to make. It was expensive and turned out not to be a good fit for the average Klipsch customer who shops for used and do-it-yourself products and is attracted to K Mart blue light specials. The lucky few who bought Palladium at significant close-out prices are reaping the benefits of Klipsch's best ever engineering effort. They are beautiful design elements to any living room sitting and require no home-made adornments.

I am not saying it is not a good speaker after hearing it side by side with another of their best. I am glad you like them you should, but do realize there is a more than fair about of "marketing" speak in what you're quoting or anything we buy, it's what marketing does. 

When it came down to it there were concessions that had to be made to fit in the cabinet design and cost point, not all the original all-out plans made it into the design. Why, well because it had to conform to another plan, make it fit in this design shape they decided on which was also very important in the market they were going for, it's just part of an overall plan.  

Good yes, the best they could design, depending. That depends on if you want all out best, or all out our best that fits what would appeal in a certain type of room for a certain buyer, at a certain price point? One of the goals was it needed to fit in a certain market space at a certain price point. Even the Jubilee was constrained to make it hit a cost point, there are drivers that could be used instead of what is used, like TAD's and prettier wood, this alone would easily more than double the cost. 

 

I agree they did a great job on sound and looks, no doubt, and it does beat the target speaker they were looking to compete with, a success in that goal.

But don't get drawn in by marketing bs, a good marketing slogan can sell even junk, think bose. It is part of the reason their marketing budget alone is bigger then Klipsch's total budget. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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1 hour ago, dtel said:

I am not saying it is not a good speaker after hearing it side by side with another of their best. I am glad you like them you should, but do realize there is a more than fair about of "marketing" speak in what you're quoting or anything we buy, it's what marketing does. 

When it came down to it there were concessions that had to be made to fit in the cabinet design and cost point, not all the original all-out plans made it into the design. Why, well because it had to conform to another plan, make it fit in this design shape they decided on which was also very important in the market they were going for, it's just part of an overall plan.  

Good yes, the best they could design, depending. That depends on if you want all out best, or all out our best that fits what would appeal in a certain type of room for a certain buyer, at a certain price point? One of the goals was it needed to fit in a certain market space at a certain price point. Even the Jubilee was constrained to make it hit a cost point, there are drivers that could be used instead of what is used, like TAD's and prettier wood, this alone would easily more than double the cost. 

 

I agree they did a great job on sound and looks, no doubt, and it does beat the target speaker they were looking to compete with, a success in that goal.

But don't get drawn in by marketing bs, a good marketing slogan can sell even junk, think bose. It is part of the reason their marketing budget alone is bigger then Klipsch's total budget. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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You mean we can't believe everything we read? Dangit!

 

I do know the acoustic engineers wanted a larger box for all the Palladiums, but concessions were made by everyone.

 

To quote a Klipsch designer...."if they let me build the box I wanted, I could make that P-39 rock" 😀

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1 minute ago, Ceptorman said:

You mean we can't believe everything we read? Dangit!

 

I do know the acoustic engineers wanted a larger box for all the Palladiums, but concessions were made by everyone.

 

To quote a Klipsch designer...."if they let me build the box I wanted, I could make that P-39 rock" 😀

Nope, not everything is true, well unless you read it on the internet of course then it must be true. 

 

Just remember marketing never ever actually builds or designs anything, they just elaborate on everything. To the point that people have to check to make sure they don't get too crazy like they invented the internet or something silly, everyone knows Al Gore invented that. 

 

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On 3/2/2019 at 10:05 AM, robert_kc said:

I was wrong about the Jubilee horn’s material.  Nonetheless, in my opinion the horn looks like an industrial appliance.  

It depends on what your emphasis is on. To me the Jubes look like they mean business and sound like it too. There is no "P" substitute for what the 402 horn does if you are looking for the best sound. It is certainly not the best looking piece of furniture though for sure.

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On 2/27/2019 at 1:14 AM, Shimei said:

Has anyone listened to these two speakers?

 

No real experience with the equipment you are talking. That "rare air" for me.

 If it's a choice of finish over function .... I take function.

 

 my black duratex LS sound as good as the veneered models and left me a few $$$ for other things.

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I don't remember the exact wording but do remember thinking bs when I read some of it, knowing some of it was bs and expounded through marketing like most things, it's is their job to make is sound better.

 

Like a good hamburger on a homemade bun, or you can say.

A wonderful burger with 100% farm raised organic beef raised to or specifications with only the freshest organic lettuce and tomatoes on an artisanal quality perfectly made bun served expertly buy or trained chefs made to order fresh just for you.  

Sounds a little better, but both can be true

 

The best they could do, or the epitome of loudspeaker technology. Within that design parameter probably so, 10 years in the making, that is a way marketing can say we have worked on this off and on or thought about a project like this for that long. or started the process that long ago. 

 

Marketing is with everything like it or not, they want to sell, there in it to make money, can't blame them for that.

 

All of us decide what we want for different reasons, as it should be, it's the reason there are different models of everything that can be bought.

 

I know I have the best I could afford even for a few times the cost, I know there is better, there is better with everything when you add more money to the equation. I have no problem knowing I don't have the best, it is still the best I have ever had and I am happy with it. 

 

Since we're talking about jubes and palladiums lately here, I have to say I have heard them side by side same room. My choice was easy, one sounded better than the other in that room and it was not the one 3x the retail price of the other.

 

But remember I said the word "I" this means me, it was my choice, if you were sitting next to me you might have had a different opinion? That opinion was no more valid than mine, it's why there are different models, I could have any of the different models. But I also will not get my feelings hurt if others who have also heard the same direct comparison choose differently, it was my choice to make.

 

No one is saying the Palladium sounds anything but good, or the jube is perfect, most who have been commenting were part of 20+ people who heard a direct comparison and came to there own conclusion.  Some of these people have VERY nice rooms, one person who chose jubes had passive crossovers he made for them which hang on the wall by the speakers as working artwork. Don't laugh these crossover alone cost more than a pair of the biggest pallidum.

 

I only participate in this because I think none of this should be taken as anything personal by anyone of us, we all make our own choices, there is no reason for me to judge your choice. I have no idea when into your choice.

 

Truth, I do not have jubes,  I went with something a little different but very close and to me just as good, for my own reasons. But I was around when both of the models came to life as many others commenting here, so I remember some of the stories. I have pictures that couldn't be talked about or shown, so I don't do it out of respect and trust.

 

But since they are discontinued I guess I can show one old pic, one did get preferred positioning for comparison.   They sure are pretty.

jubefest_9_08_(71).jpg

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1 hour ago, WillyBob said:

 If it's a choice of finish over function .... I take function.

 

Me too.   I believe Frank Lloyd Wright said something like, "Form follows function."  Well, in his work, maybe.  And, to a large degree, in the Jubilee.

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Money no object I would gravitate to the Palladium. In fact I came close to purchasing a pair of the stand mounts. Still regret not buying them. The Jubes  are too large and industrial for my living space not to mention there would be zero chance I would get spousal buy in.

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26 minutes ago, YK Thom said:

Money no object I would gravitate to the Palladium. In fact I came close to purchasing a pair of the stand mounts. Still regret not buying them. The Jubes  are too large and industrial for my living space not to mention there would be zero chance I would get spousal buy in.

I wish you could have gotten a Palladium pair at the special close-out prices. You and your wife would now be happy campers.

 

https://www.klipsch.com/blog/klipsch-palladium-series-a-masterclass 

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36 minutes ago, dtel said:

The best they could do, or the epitome of loudspeaker technology. Within that design parameter probably so

I'll bet that's true, the design parameter being "something with direct radiators for the bass."  After all of PWK's (and others') work on modulation distortion, and Stereophile's long overdue "rediscovery" of it a few years ago, https://www.stereophile.com/content/red-shift-doppler-distortion-loudspeakers-page-3 , I would think that the lowest modulation distortion speaker would be fully horn loaded (even in the bass).

38 minutes ago, dtel said:

I have to say I have heard them side by side same room. My choice was easy, one sounded better than the other in that room and it was not the one 3x the retail price of the other.

 

I suspect that part of the motivation for the creation of the P39 was to put something into that very high price point, for those who don't feel they have "the best" unless they have spent a great deal of money.  A friend's uncle once owned a limousine touring service.  One tour was priced at a very, very high price, but only offered a minimum of extra places to go.  He called it the FTG&D tour.  I won't elaborate.

 

Don't get me wrong.  I, too, believe the Palladium probably was an excellent sounding speaker, but I doubt that it was as good as the best configuration of the Jubilee.

 

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44 minutes ago, garyrc said:

 

I suspect that part of the motivation for the creation of the P39 was to put something into that very high price point, for those who don't feel they have "the best" unless they have spent a great deal of money.  

 

You could be right, there are many who are happy with a Timex and claim it keeps just as good of time as a Rolex. It might.

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53 minutes ago, garyrc said:

I suspect that part of the motivation for the creation of the P39 was to put something into that very high price point, for those who don't feel they have "the best" unless they have spent a great deal of money.

That's true, there are some who will not even look at any speaker unless it's over a certain price. I heard someone say " it's for the guy who wants to impress people with the invoice".

 

I would think it's no one who has Klipsch, even full retail the Palladium barely fits into the very bottom of that price group, and it does not come close for many buyers, to cheap, can't be any good.

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54 minutes ago, Dawson's Ridge said:

You could be right, there are many who are happy with a Timex and claim it keeps just as good of time as a Rolex. It might.

 

I suspect my Timex does.  It even looks good.  I bought it c2003, and it's still ticking.

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In regards to a comparison test in Hope a couple years ago. There were Khorns, RF7ll, P-39, and I assume Jubs, maybe more (I wasn't there) in the same room. I have no doubt that they all sounded better in most people's opinions than the P-39s, numerous people said so. But we all know that any speaker can sound better within a different environment. That day, in that room, with that amp, the P39 wasn't considered a very good sounding speaker. 

 

There are a few threads on here where people absolutely love the Palladium line. There are 3-4 forum members here that own Palladiums and Khorns, and they all claimed they liked the sound of the Palladiums better. Sound is objective.

 

I think the Palladium was a huge risk for Klipsch, especially in the finance department. They had a lot of people around the world working on it, I think even BMW helped in the design. Who knows how well they were marketed, I'm sure any Klipsch product would benefit from a healthy marketing budget. I think they swung for the fence, and didn't quite hit the home run in terms of sales. 

 

I do know there are numerous reviews about the P-series, and I've never read a bad one. One guy even mentioned you better be prepared to spend many times the cost of Palladiums to find a speaker to outperform it, even a 100k pair of Wilson Audio speakers fell short.....in his opinion.

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1 hour ago, garyrc said:

 

I suspect my Timex does.  It even looks good.  I bought it c2003, and it's still ticking.

I notice you have some NAD gear. I recently added the new NAD C 268 class D amp to a second system and am very impressed with the Hypex technology and resulting sound quality. There is absolutely no noise or heat build-up with the amp.  A high-value product. 

 

ps. When I go to the theater and dinner I wear a Rolex, when I go to the gym I wear a Timex. I don't have to be on time at the gym.

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33 minutes ago, dtel said:

That's true, there are some who will not even look at any speaker unless it's over a certain price. I heard someone say " it's for the guy who wants to impress people with the invoice".

 

You're right.  Klipsch set the price too low to attract that customer base.

 

The  $1,111,111 HigherFi Dark Star Opulence would qualify.

 

A proud home owner once took us on a tour, being sure to mention the price of every item he had.

 

In Paul Goodman's surrealist novel, The Empire City, the children of Eliphaz have price tags hanging from them.

 

 

   
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I hope we see trickle down from the Palladium line in future offerings. Styling cues would be a nice addition. They were a magnificent looking series. The tweeter and midhorn in that configuration looked great and according to Stereophile sounded fantastic earning a class A rating.

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